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Comments (16)

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Posted by Resident
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Apr 12, 2013 at 12:29 pm

This high tech/well educated immigration problem is going to get worse because of the policies of California UCs and other colleges in prefering international students due to the higher fees they receive. All the UCs are discriminating against California residents as a result of this.

Consequently, when these international students graduate they get the US jobs because there are so many more foreign graduates than US graduates. This means that the employers who want the best candidates for their vacancies in the workforce have to get them H1 visas to replace their student visas.

Get the UCs to prioritize educating Californian residents. With more homegrown college grads who are looking for high tech jobs here at home, there will be less demand for the H1 visas.

I agree that the UC colleges should be accepting more local students, but the only way to do this is to increase funding for UC. Are Zuckerberg and his billionaire buddies willing to put their money where there mouths are and invest in local public education? Why is he donating money to New Jersey schools when local schools are just as needy?

Given how little Facebook offers in terms of real technology development to the US--why are they getting any tax breaks at all? Maybe it's time for an advocacy group to push for closing all tax loopholes?

Posted by Skeptical
a resident of Crescent Park
on Apr 12, 2013 at 3:05 pm

Wow, so much negativity and cynicism in this discussion! First of all, companies like Facebook, regardless of the actual level of taxes they pay (which are considerable) or the tax breaks they may get, contribute enormously to the tax base by employing so many people and providing a platform for other companies who also employ people. Most of these people pay pretty substantial taxes, and spend money that ends up employing people who also pay taxes and spend money. This is how an economy works, and this is how the government gets all its money.

" Even though Facebook (FB) reported $1.1 billion in pre-tax profits from U.S. operations in 2012, it will probably pay zero federal and state taxesâ€”and even receive a federal tax refund of about $429 millionâ€”according to a Feb. 14 statement from Citizens for Tax Justice. "

Posted by Skeptical
a resident of Community Center
on Apr 13, 2013 at 12:36 am

You guys need to do a little more research into the various ways corporation pay taxes directly and contribute to the tax base, in addition to providing jobs and economic well-being to pretty much everybody in this country. I get the feeling that most people on this discussion board never ran a business, and have no idea how much in taxes and fees a company pays....not to mention the jobs they provide, that enable their workers to live decent lives, and lets them pay taxes that support all of the folks who don't or can't pay taxes.

Example to one complainer above -- look into how much in taxes Exxon-Mobil pays before you call them a non-tax-payer...you'd be shocked.

Reading my Chevron 2012 annual report, I see 230 billion revenues and other income, subtract 194 billion costs and other deductions, leaves 46 billion income before income tax expense.

Income tax on that amount was 20 billion (43% rate).

That leaves 26 billion net income, about $13 earnings per share, currently trading around $120 per share.

I receive a piece of that after-tax profit as dividends, and then get to pay more income tax on it (albeit at a lower rate).

Regarding Facebook, looks like the company has deducted what they gave to the executives et al, and let those people pay the IRS and California at personal income tax rates. All the revenues get taxed somewhere, usually multiple places.

Posted by Really?
a resident of Old Palo Alto
on Apr 13, 2013 at 10:58 am

And why exactly can we educate our kids, hire them and let THEM pay taxes? After all, majority 'party' founders are local, right? Just with an access to good education. Not everybody will create next Google, Amazon, or Facebook. But if properly trained will be decent engineers, etc. Since when US has a shortage in intellectual property? What they have a shortage of is cheap labor. But 'cheap' labor to selected companies will cost zillions to citizens on a long run.

Posted by Upset neighbor
a resident of Old Palo Alto
on Apr 13, 2013 at 5:02 pm

What is especially upsetting about this PAC, from the perspective of someone who lives in Silicon Valley, is the support it receives from high profile high-tech leaders like Bill Gates, John Chambers, Eric Schmidt, Zuckerberg, and others (including self-interested immigration servicers, like attorneys. Those men made billions off the backs of American high tech workers, and they are using blatant deception and outright lies to support their cause to bring in more H-1B workers.

What's little known is that American corporations are using large-scale outright deception and manipulation in an attempt to displace American Workers.

Some of the information presented in the following links would shock most Americans, because American corporate leaders don't want us to know the truth, and they are paying off policy makers with contributions to keep the truth from us. The H-1B fiasco has cost Americans $10TRILLION dollars, since 1975. For anyone who wants to know the truth, read on.

One of the most respected technology pundits in Silicon Valley:Web Link

Watch this attorney and his consultants teach corporations how to manipulate the law to replace qualified American workers:Web Link

Here's more abuse of the L-1 Visa (H1-B's are only the tip of the icebergWeb Link

Posted by CrescentParkAnon
a resident of Crescent Park
on Apr 14, 2013 at 1:57 pm

To me this H1B Visa thing would mostly be OK if the corporations and the people who made all this money of them PAID THE TAXES THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO.

Reagan set this up, CUT, CUT, CUT until the end goal is to get rid of taxes and instill the idea that paying taxes at all is unacceptable. If Zuckerberg, Gates, Chambers. Schmidt, et al paid their damn taxes and quit trying to screw the government and the rest of the country those taxes would be funding American students to learn computer science and the high-tech skills that are necessary.

The vision and the trajectory for the country this has brought about has been the main thing that provokes most of the problems we have now, not to mention the total lack of respect for the truth or honest argument and discussion and the buying of the media to prevent or distort news and information.

These people are killing the goose that laid the golden egg so they can play at being big shots ... like the big shots in other countries that by our culture should not even exist.

And not to mention that these technologies of today can spread and create weapons of mass destruction in ways that trying to develop the world by buying cars and TVs from other countries never did.

We cannot have a society that survives when we let people who do not care about its survival and integrity open the gates and let too many people in and too many secrets out.

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